FMVSS 101: Controls and Displays explained.

What FMVSS 101 says it is for

The eCFR heads this section "Standard No. 101; Controls and displays." Under 49 CFR part 571, the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards are the numbered standards that set safety performance requirements for motor vehicles and equipment. The text below is quoted from 571.101 as current through October 29, 2026.

This standard specifies performance requirements for location, identification, color, and illumination of motor vehicle controls, telltales and indicators.

The purpose of this standard is to ensure the accessibility, visibility and recognition of motor vehicle controls, telltales and indicators, and to facilitate the proper selection of controls under daylight and nighttime conditions, in order to reduce the safety hazards caused by the diversion of the driver's attention from the driving task, and by mistakes in selecting controls.

What it applies to

The application section of the standard says:

This standard applies to passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses.

Applicability is decided by the text of the standard as written, including any exclusions it lists, and by the date-specific rules in it. This page does not decide whether a particular vehicle or item is covered.

How the standard is organized

The eCFR text of 571.101 has these top-level sections:

• S1: Scope
• S2: Purpose
• S3: Application
• S4: Definitions
• S5: Requirements

In all, the text has 16 numbered headings. Use the finder above to search them; for example, a search for "test" lists the headings that mention tests.

Second-level headings at a glance

These are the numbered sub-sections one level below the top, in order (first 6 of 6):

• S5.1 Location
• S5.2 Identification
• S5.3 Illumination
• S5.4 Color
• S5.5 Common space for displaying multiple messages
• S5.6 Conditions

Key requirements, quoted from the text

These are excerpts from the requirements sections of 571.101, in the order the standard presents them. Long paragraphs are shortened where marked with [...]; the eCFR has the complete text, tables and figures, which this page omits.

S5 Requirements. Each passenger car, multipurpose passenger vehicle, truck and bus that is fitted with a control, a telltale or an indicator listed in Table 1 or Table 2 must meet the requirements of this standard for the location, identification, color, and illumination of that control, telltale or indicator. However, the requirements for telltales and indicators do not apply to vehicles with GVWRs of 4,536 kg or greater if these specified vehicles are manufactured before September 1, 2013.

S5.1 Location. S5.1.1 The controls listed in Table 1 and in Table 2 must be located so they are operable by the driver under the conditions of S5.6.2. S5.1.2 The telltales and indicators listed in Table 1 and Table 2 and their identification must be located so that, when activated, they are visible to a driver under the conditions of S5.6.1 and S5.6.2. S5.1.3 Except as provided in S5.1.4, the identification for controls, telltales and indicators must be placed on or adjacent to the telltale, indicator or control that it identifies. [...]

S5.2 Identification. S5.2.1 Except for the Low Tire Pressure Telltale, each control, telltale and indicator that is listed in column 1 of Table 1 or Table 2 must be identified by the symbol specified for it in column 2 or the word or abbreviation specified for it in column 3 of Table 1 or Table 2. If a symbol is used, each symbol provided pursuant to this paragraph must be substantially similar in form to the symbol as it appears in Table 1 or Table 2. If a symbol is used, each symbol provided pursuant to this paragraph must have the proportional dimensional characteristics of the symbol as it appears in Table 1 or Table 2. [...]

S5.3.1 Timing of illumination. (a) Except as provided in S5.3.1(c), the identifications of controls for which the word “Yes” is specified in column 5 of Table 1 must be capable of being illuminated whenever the headlamps are activated. This requirement does not apply to a control located on the floor, floor console, steering wheel, steering column, or in the area of windshield header, or to a control for a heating and air-conditioning system that does not direct air upon the windshield. (b) Except as provided in S5.3.1(c), the indicators and their identifications for which the word “Yes” is specified in column 5 of Table 1 must be illuminated whenever the vehicle's propulsion system and headlamps are activated. [...]

S5.3.2 Brightness of illumination of controls and indicators. S5.3.2.1 Means must be provided for illuminating the indicators, identifications of indicators and identifications of controls listed in Table 1 to make them visible to the driver under daylight and nighttime driving conditions. S5.3.2.2 The means of providing the visibility required by S5.3.2.1: (a) Must be adjustable to provide at least two levels of brightness; (b) At a level of brightness other than the highest level, the identification of controls and indicators must be barely discernible to the driver who has adapted to dark ambient roadway condition; (c) May be operable manually or automatically; and (d) May have levels of brightness, other than the two required visible levels of brightness, at which those items and identification are not visible. [...]

S5.3.3 Brightness of telltale illumination. (a) Means must be provided for illuminating telltales and their identification sufficiently to make them visible to the driver under daylight and nighttime driving conditions. (b) The means for providing the required visibility may be adjustable manually or automatically, except that the telltales and identification for brakes, highbeams, turn signals, and safety belts may not be adjustable under any driving condition to a level that is invisible.

Defined terms

The standard defines 8 terms in its definitions section; the first 8 are quoted here from the eCFR.

• (a) The identifier is in close proximity to the control, telltale or indicator; and
• Common space means an area on which more than one telltale, indicator, identifier, or other message may be displayed, but not simultaneously.
• Control means the hand-operated part of a device that enables the driver to change the state or functioning of the vehicle or a vehicle subsystem.
• Indicator means a device that shows the magnitude of the physical characteristics that the instrument is designed to sense.
• Identifier means a symbol, word, or words used to identify a control, telltale, or indicator.
• Multi-function control means a control through which the driver may select, and affect the operation of, more than one vehicle function.
• Multi-task display means a display on which more than one message can be shown simultaneously.
• Telltale means an optical signal that, when illuminated, indicates the actuation of a device, a correct or improper functioning or condition, or a failure to function.

Limits of this page

This page quotes the text of 49 CFR 571.101 as published in the eCFR, current through October 29, 2026. It omits tables, figures, cross-referenced test procedures in other parts, and the preambles and rulemaking history that explain the rule. It does not tell you whether a given vehicle, part or product complies, how to run a test, or what a manufacturer must certify. Compliance questions go to the manufacturer's engineers, qualified counsel or NHTSA. The eCFR is an editorial compilation, not the official legal edition of the Federal Register.

Sources

Sources opened and read November 2, 2026.

• eCFR: 49 CFR 571.101, Standard No. 101; Controls and displays. (current through October 29, 2026) (read November 2, 2026)
• eCFR: 49 CFR part 571, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (current through October 29, 2026) (read November 2, 2026)